NFL Week 4 Ranks: Resurgent Patriots get an "A", the rest of the AFC East fails miserably

If the Miami dolphins were hoping to make a statement Sunday, they did it. This was just not good.

The Dolphins entered New England this week with a 3-0 record and left with their dorsal fin between their legs after being beaten 38-7 by the Patriots. The victory of New England was so dominant that Bill Belichick complimented his players after the match, which was surprising because Belichick never complimented anyone.

"I thought we had what we needed from our team today, the players, the coaches, did a great job this week – the coaching staff," Belichick said, via quotes. distributed by the team. "Our players have shown a lot of leadership and they have responded today, we have received contributions from almost everyone, every unit, every phase of the team."

When Belichick says that the patriots have received contributions from everyone, he is not joking. One of the biggest contributions came from rookie Sony Michel, who carried the ball 25 times for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Thanks to the ground game of Michel and the Patriots, Tom Brady did not have to carry the team for once. The Patriots riders have combined to carry the ball 40 times in this game, which is remarkable because the Patriots rarely become so crazy on the ground. It was only the second time since the start of the 2015 season that the Pats finished with 40 or more races. In Belichick's career, the Patriots now have 27-1 when they let their runners run the ball at least 40 times.

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Basically, the team does not often take the game out of Tom Brady's hand, but it works, it seems to work because the opponent has no idea what will happen. Of course, it's not as if Brady had played badly. The 41-year-old had 274 yards and three touchdowns, although he also made two interceptions.

For the Patriots, these choices did not matter, and that's because the Dolphins could not move the ball against New England. The Patriots limited the Dolphins to 172 yards in the game, likely even impressing Belichick, who for the second time since 2009 has seen New England hold an opponent less than 175 yards.

At the beginning of week 4, the Patriots fans were slightly shaken by the panic, because they had never really been in this situation. If the Dolphins had won Sunday, it would have been the first time in Tom Brady's career that the Pats were three games from first place. Of course, five minutes from the kickoff, no one at Gillette Stadium thought the Patriots would actually lose.

If week 4 has proven something in the East AFC, it is this: the more things change, the more they stay the same. the Jets and Bills could have rookie quarterbacks, the Dolphins could be in first place now, but this is the Patriots division until Belichick and Brady decide to retire, which is starting to look like something that will not happen anytime soon.

The Patriots have an "A" this week and all other teams in the AFC are getting an "F"

New England 38-7 over Miami

Miami Dolphins: F

The Dolphins have had very bad performances in recent years, but this one could have been the worst. Miami has totaled only 175 yards in this game, the lowest total of the team since 2013, and yes, that means the Dolphins were not so bad during the loss of the game. year 2017. Fortunately, no one in Miami has decided to have "AFC East Champion" T-shirts made after the team's 3-0 start.

New England Patriots: A

If Bill Belichick is looking for something to upset about this game, it will probably be the fact that the Patriots have abandoned a touchdown pass to Brock Osweiler. Of course, that took a long time, so there is a good chance that Belichick will smile all week after seeing his team achieve one of its most dominant performances in recent years. The 38-7 win was New England's biggest margin of victory since 2016.

Green Bay 22-0 in front of Buffalo

Buffalo Bills: F

If the Bills want to remove a positive element from this game, it's that Josh Allen has survived four quarters. Allen was defeated by a Packers defense that sent him back seven times. Of course, even when Allen had to throw, he was not great: the rookie launched two interceptions and lost a fumble. The Bills totaled only 145 yards, their lowest total since 2006.

Green Bay Packers: A-

Aaron Rodgers was probably a little surprised when he looked at the scorecard as a result of this match and that 's because he' s not getting defensive help like this very often. This match marked the first time since 2010 that the Packers launched a shutout and that for the third time, Rodgers became the Packers 'starting quarterback in 2008. The Bills' offensive line could not stop Kyler Fackrell. The seven bags of Green Bay. The Packers were so dominant that the Bills did not get inside Green Bay's 20-yard line throughout the match.

Cincinnati 37-36 on Atlanta

Cincinnati Bengals: B +

After Tyler Eifert fell with a macabre leg injury In the second half, the Bengals seemed determined to win this match, and that 's exactly what they did, thanks to a spectacular performance by Andy Dalton. While the Bengals were leading 36-31, Dalton led his team in a winning race that included two conversions (fourth and eighth, fourth and sixth) and a 13-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green with just seven seconds remaining. After the arrival of Joe Mixon, Gio Bernard also won, the Bengals running back scored two touchdowns and averaged 4.6 yards per run over 15 races.

Atlanta Falcons: C

Nobody has more trouble than Matt Ryan. No matter how many points it puts on the dashboard, this is never enough. For the second consecutive week, the Falcons lost a shootout and, for the second week in a row, they lost despite the fact that they had gotten an error-free match from their attack. If you wonder how rare it is, well, it is rare.

Since 1940, teams scoring more than 36 points at home with 0 figure turnover are 402-4.

The Atlanta Falcons are 0-2 since last week.

Half of the losses are now in Atlanta.

– Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 30, 2018

The Falcons made 11 of 15 attempts in the third run, returned the ball more than zero times and hit only once, but still managed to lose. This is not easy to do.

Dallas 26-24 against Detroit

It's not easy to give the Cowboys offense, but that's exactly what the Lions did in this game, especially in the fourth quarter. The Lions gave up two long scoring campaigns in the final quarter of the game, which was probably due to the fact that their defense was on the field for 10:48 of the fourth quarter. The defense looked worn and it showed that they could not generate a late pass late in the game and they could not stop Ezekiel Elliott.

It seems that the Cowboys have found a way to solve their offensive problems: just give the ball to Ezekiel Elliott as many times as possible. The Cowboys running back touched the ball 29 times for 240 yards. Most of this damage occurred on the ground in the form of 152 yards on the ground. Elliott is the only player in the NFL to total 200 yards scrum in a single game during the first four weeks of the season. Elliott's play paved the way for Dak Prescott, who scored for 255 yards and two touchdowns, marking Prescott's first loss of the season this season.

Houston 37-34 on Indianapolis (OT)

At this point, it is probably safe to say that J.J. Watt is back. The Texans star defenseman collected two of Houston's four sacks in the game, including a second-quarter striptease bag that allowed the Texans to win the ball on the 8-yard line. Deshaun Watson also had a huge game (29 of 42, 375 yards), which was somewhat surprising as he rarely had time to pitch. The Texans quarterback was sacked seven times, but still managed to complete 10 passes for DeAndre Hopkins, who finished with 169 receiving yards.

If we learn one thing about Colts in this game, it is that they are definitely no longer concerned with Andrew Luck's shoulder. Not only was he able to launch a Hail Mary against the Texans – so we could put Hail Mary controversy to lie down – but the Colts also let him throw the ball 62 times. That number is a career high for Luck and also represents the highest total of assists for a quarterback this season. Unfortunately for the Colts, when Luck did not pass, he had trouble keeping the ball. The quarter lost a fumble after a bad shot in the end zone that the Texans recovered for a touchdown. Luck also lost another fumble in his own 10-meter line that led to another Texans touchdown. The fact that this match was extended was even a miracle to the limit given that Indy was left behind by 28-10, while there was only 6:40 in the third quarter. By the time OT started, this match seemed to be tied, but Frank Reich decided to play for the win and to finish fourth after 43 in OT.

Jacksonville 31-12 on N.Y. Jets

Putting a rookie quarterback on the field against the Jaguars' defense is almost unfair, which Sam Darnold probably did on Sunday. Darnold was fired three times, completed only 50% of his passes and received no help from the Jets, who had only 34 yards.

The only reason this note is not an "A +" is because the Jaguars' offensive is a bit left out in the second half. The Jags returned the ball more than three times in the half and the Jets were nine points ahead of the turnovers. Of course, they may have earned the right to be neglected because they put 503 yards in the offensive, making it the fourth-highest total in franchise history. Twenty-five percent of those yards came from Dede Westbrook, who had nine passes for 130 yards.

Tennessee 26-23 over Philadelphia (OT)

When Doug Pederson watches a movie of this game, he will probably be disappointed by two important things: the Eagles' red zone and the offensive line having so much trouble protecting Carson Wentz. Wentz has been fired four times and the Eagles are probably lucky that this number is not higher. The Eagles also scored just one touchdown on four trips in the red zone (25%), which is a low number for a team that finished second in the NFL in red zone touchdown percentage last season. Defensively, the Eagles let the Titans convert their three fourth attempts into overtime. The bad thing for the Eagles is that these three attempts were made on the Tennessee record and included a fourth and a fifteenth conversion.

It became clear that the Titans have mastered the art of spectacular victory. For the third consecutive week, the Titans gained three points and for the third week in a row, half of their fans probably had an anxiety attack at one point or another of the match. While the Titans led 17-3 in the third quarter, Marcus Mariota led the Titans alone. Despite an injury, Mariota led the Titans passing (344 yards, 2 TD) and rush (46 yards, 1 TD). Mariota also received a lot of help from Corey Davis, who caught nine passes for a 161-yard rush, including a 10-yard pass in overtime.

Chicago 48-10 above Tampa Bay

The Buccaneers rolled the FitzMagic train for as long as possible, but we probably all agree that the race is over after the spectacular train crash against the Bears. Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Bucs' offense had no answer for the Bears. The Bucs could not protect their quarters (four sacks), they could not hold the ball (three turnovers) and they could not convert to third (3 of 12). The only advantage for Tampa is that Jameis Winston was able to work rust in the second period when he came in. The downside is that he launched two steals in a performance where he went 16 on 20 for 145 yards.

Mitchell Trubisky has made six touchdown passes in this game, which is impressive in itself, but it's even more amazing if we consider the fact that he only launched seven touchdowns during the all 2017 season. The Bears could also have a new secret weapon at Tarik Cohen, who scored 174 offensive yards in the match (53 in the race, 121 in the game), which broke his career record of 113. The 48 points scored by the Bears was the second highest total of the team since 2010.

Seattle 20-17 on Arizona

When you hear someone call it a nasty victory, that's the kind of victory they usually talk about. The Seahawks won this match despite not having converted a single third (0 to 10), becoming the first team since 2015 to do so. One of the things the Seahawks did well in this game was throwing the ball. With 101 yards from Mike Davis, the Seahawks had a total of 171 rushing yards, a huge number for a team that has passed the 170-yard mark once in 2017 and once in 2016.

If Josh Rosen remembers anything about his first start, it probably means that his kicker could not pass the ball through the posts. Cardinals kicker Phil Dawson missed two kicks in the game, including a 45-yard effort that was completed by 1:55. Rosen was not great, but the Cardinals must feel optimistic after watching their rookie throw 180 yards and a touchdown during an error free match.

L.A. Chargers 29-27 over San Francisco

It's not easy for a quarterback to assist on the road and provoke a defeat in the NFL, but that's what the 49ers almost did with C. J. Beathard in the center on Sunday. Without Jimmy Garoppolo, Beathard showed an impressive mastery of Kyle Shanahan's offense, scoring 298 yards and two touchdowns. Of course, Beathard also launched two deadly interceptions, the worst coming from the last offensive offensive of the 49ers.

It's a good thing that the Chargers have won this match, otherwise Caleb Sturgis might not have a job after missing two more points and a goal on the pitch. Melvin Gordon had a huge game for the Chargers with 159 yards and a touchdown in just 22 hits (104 yards rushing, 55 yards passing).

New Orleans 33-18 on N.Y. Giants

Congratulations to everyone who had Alvin Kamara on their fantasy list. With Drew Brees slightly out of the game, the Saints traveled to Kamara early and often and the second consecutive year was marked by a total of 134 rushing yards and three touchdowns. The most impressive race in Kamara was 49 yards at 2:09, clearing the match.

The Giants' attack seems to be a problem and this problem is that they are sort of a new way to disappoint each week. This time, the unit looked impressive in a 75-yard touchdown run over their opening possession, but things collapsed after that. After this race, the Giants reached the Saints' territory only at the end of the third quarter. The fact that the Giants struggled this week was particularly surprising as the Saints arrived on Sunday with 34.3 points per game, which earned them the last place in the NFL.

Oakland 45-42 above Cleveland (OT)

The spotlight was on Baker Mayfield when that match started, but it was another Browns rookie who stole the offensive show for Cleveland. Running back Nick Chubb had 105 yards and two touchdowns and it's not even impressive. The impressive part is that he did it on three litters. For the most part, Mayfield looked strong, but he also made some ugly rookie mistakes, most notably a choice of six in the first half. The Browns are probably going to be fighting this week and that's because they led this game 28-14 with just six minutes into the third quarter

After exchanging Khalil Mack, it seemed almost like Jon Gruden's goal was to win games without any defense, which was essentially the case with the Raiders. Although the team was enlightened by a rookie quarterback, she managed to escape thanks to a clutch game from Derek Carr, who collected 437 yards and four touchdowns. The Raiders finished with 565 total yards, the fourth highest total in the history of the franchise. In addition, Marshawn Lynch went into Beast mode on the Browns with 130 yards in 20 carries.

Baltimore 26-14 over Pittsburgh

Joe Flacco completed his first six passes for 73 yards and two touchdowns, and the Ravens then rolled. Flacco seems to have a new favorite weapon every week, and this week was John Brown, who caught three passes for 116 yards and a touchdown. The Ravens held the Steelers just 19 yards, scoring the first time since 2000 they had a team under 20 yards on the ground. Baltimore also had a big game from Justin Tucker, who scored four goals on the field in a stadium that is usually not soft with the kickers. Three of those four goals were scored in the fourth quarter and helped the Ravens to stand out.

The Steelers may just need to give The Veon Bell a blank check at this point because their ground game is leading nowhere without him. Against the Ravens, the Steelers had only 19 rushing yards, the lowest total since 1970. Bell's replacement, James Conner, now has less than 20 yards in two of the last three weeks. was held less than 20 yards during his career. This match could have been more ugly if offensive midfielder Alex Collins had not lost a breakaway on the line of 1 Steelers.